Hungry? Fancy a few insects?

Sílvia de Lamo
Researcher at the Department of Chemical Engineering 
silvia.delamo(ELIMINAR)@urv.cat

The practice of eating insects and spiders, or arthropods in general, is known as entomophagy. It is common in many countries and has been practised for thousands of years. In fact, it is estimated that currently more than two billion people worldwide consume them, and over 2,000 species have been documented as edible. Among the most commonly eaten insect groups are beetles, caterpillars, bees, wasps, ants, locusts, crickets and cicadas.

Insects are a highly nutritious and healthy food source, with a high fibre content from their exoskeleton, which is rich in chitin, fats, proteins, vitamins and minerals. Their nutritional value varies considerably from one edible species to another, and even within a single species the nutritional value can vary depending on the metamorphic stage it is in, the habitat it lives in and its diet.

But where does this interest in insects come from? Well, the dietary model currently followed in developed countries is based on a high intake of animal protein and there are now serious concerns about the long-term viability of this model if everybody in the world were to follow such a diet, especially given that by 2050 the Earth's population will have risen to an estimated 9.8 billion people.

It is also calculated that if current consumption levels of animal-based proteins are to be maintained in 2050, 50% more protein will be needed for both human and animal feed than is currently produced. It is therefore vital to seek new sustainable sources of protein to complement existing ones, and insects are beginning to play a key role as a complementary source.

The use of insect protein in pet food is already accepted, and very recently (June 2021), the European Parliament's Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety voted in favour of using insect protein for the feed of monogastric animals (birds and pigs).

In terms of human consumption, however, in Europe and North America insects do not form part of the culinary tradition, meaning that consumers there have been hesitant regarding their use in the design of new food products. Nevertheless, since January 2021, the Panel on Nutrition, New Foods and Food Allergens of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has approved the human consumption of both whole and ground mealworms (Tenebrio molitor), migratory locusts (Locustra migratoria), house crickets (Acheta domestica) and the larvae of Alphitobius diaperinus, and their sale has subsequently been permitted by the Regulation Implementing Committee of the European Parliament.

This is why, here at the Universitat Rovira i Virgili, we are studying the possibility of developing new foods by combining a new production technology, 3D food printing, with sustainably sourced ingredients, specifically mealworm protein.